


Doctor Who: After the Cracks (Alternate Series Six)

by UltraReview113



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (2005)
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-11
Updated: 2020-04-16
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:27:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,666
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23597587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UltraReview113/pseuds/UltraReview113
Summary: After the Pandorica, the Alliance, and the fateful 26th June 2010, the Doctor and the Ponds take off on even more adventures. However - the Doctor knows that something caused the TARDIS to explode, and the mysterious 'silence' is still in play. Take off in this alternate Series Six, with a completely different story and approach to the TV Series Six. Doctor Who?
Kudos: 4





	1. Episode 0 Prologue

Hello everyone! Welcome to my first Doctor Who fanfiction – I’ve been a lifelong fan and I’ve wanted to do this for so long, and I figured it’s finally time to do it. Before I go on – I’d just like to point out a few things:  
I don’t own Doctor Who – I don’t claim to and probably never will (but it’s a nice thought). I’m not profiting off of the show in any way and just trying to entertain fans!  
This is an alternate Series Six – but there will be no real Series Six aspects here. No Astronaut, no Gangers, no Demon’s Run, no timeline error that needs to be fixed. This is a completely different take on the Silence storyline. I wanted to point that out so people don’t get confused – the Doctor Who story completely splits after Series Five.  
Finally, the River Song story WON’T get explained here. It’s just avoided and put off, like it was in Series Four and Five. So I hope that clears a few things up!  
Without any further ado, I hope you enjoy the story!  
  
Episode 0 – It’s a Wonderful Life  
Prologue  
The Doctor danced around his beautiful time machine, while it whirred and hurtled itself through the vortex, playing a jazz instrumental of ‘We Wish You A Merry Christmas’ over the speakers. The Doctor loved Christmas. It was his favourite time of the year (except for every Saturday and the occasional Tuesday), and this one was particularly special. It was the Pond’s (his best friends – who he also loved more than Christmas) first married Christmas, and they’d invited him round for dinner. He was salivating at the idea of turkey, roast potatoes, assorted vegetables and pigs in blankets with a rich gravy drizzled on top of them. Amy was an amazing chef; he’d known that since she made him homemade fish fingers and custard. Rory was also making a Christmas pudding, which made the Doctor even more excited, as Rory was an exceptional baker. He couldn’t believe that they didn’t want to open a restaurant! He even offered them an empty premises on the commercial asteroid belt of Bankosarius-14, where some of the best restaurants in the Universe were. He understood though. They’d be with some tough competition. And they wouldn’t be able to travel with him anymore! They’d be too busy! He couldn’t allow that.   
The Doctor sighed. He was aware that the time would come when they would grow beyond him and want their own lives. That made him sad, he loved the Ponds, probably more than they loved him. He needed them in his life, he had forgotten what it was like to travel alone. His mind fell back to his previous incarnation, and the torment he faced at the end… he couldn’t let that happen to him again. He needed to hold onto the Ponds for as long as he could. Show them everything. Take them everywhere. Yeah, that was the plan.  
But there was something else. The TARDIS exploded for a reason, and it had something to do with him. The ‘silence’, whatever it was, is still at large and waiting to pounce. There was something else as well – he could feel it. It wasn’t just a hunch either. It wasn’t something that just came to him every now and then. It haunted his dreams. He felt it in every waking moment. It terrified him… it reminded him of… he couldn’t quite remember. Like some kind of perception filter. But if it was a perception filter, it was deliberate. The Doctor contemplated this for a long while, but he couldn’t work it out. He didn’t like that… when he couldn’t work it out. The Doctor slumped down at the seat by the TARDIS console, head in hands. He was so worried about everything. He was worried about dragging Amy and Rory into a situation even he was scared of. He was worried about the ‘silence’, and what that might mean. He was worried about… worrying. Just as the Doctor began to be absorbed in his own thoughts for the rest of time, the phone rang.   
As if nothing had happened at all, the Doctor jumped to his feet, twirled a few times and answered.  
“Hello!” The Doctor said cheerily, “You’ve reached the TARDIS, how may I be of assistance?”   
“Doctor?” A familiar Scottish accent answered, in a slightly passive aggressive tone, “Where are you?”  
“I’m in the TARDIS? Amy is everything okay?” The Doctor asked, nervously.  
“Well, no, actually.” Amy replied.  
“What’s wrong?” The Doctor asked, his nervousness intensifying, as he started to fiddle with the TARDIS controls, getting ready for potential danger.  
“You’re late!” Her voice bellowed down the phone, making the Doctor’s ears ring. “Raggedy man, you get here now!”  
Without hesitation, the Doctor dropped the phone and ran around the TARDIS console, hitting the whimsical controls, spinning on the spot.   
“Christmas Dinner, here I come!” The Doctor said to himself, smiling.  
Little did he know what would happen that Christmas Day.  
TO BE CONTINUED


	2. Episode 0 Chapter 1

Hi everyone! I hope you enjoyed the prologue and looking forward to the rest of the story now! Please read and review, so I can get some feedback and can adapt the story to the reader’s liking (because I’m just a nice guy).   
Without any further ado, Geronimo!

Episode 0 – It’s a Wonderful Life  
Chapter 1  
Amy prodded the turkey in anticipation. She was desperate to see the Doctor. She hadn’t seen him for two months, and despite their phone conversations, she missed him dearly. But it wasn’t just that. Her and Rory were having problems. It was like overnight, he just changed. He’s short tempered, narcissistic and shows no love or affection to her anymore. Some nights he would just go out, and she wouldn’t see him until the afternoon of the following day. There was no evidence that he was drunk or had gone to the pub, so she suspected that he was having an affair. Whenever he wasn’t there, and was off with the suspected mystery girl, she wept and wept and wept. Whenever she called Rory out on his behaviour, he either told her she was overreacting or to shut up. She needed her raggedy doctor, and she needed him now. Just as the she felt like tears were ready to escape her eyes, she heard her favourite noise in the universe. The TARDIS. She flung open the window and watched it materialise. She smiled to herself. Finally, a man she could trust.   
The Doctor leaped out of the TARDIS doors, only to see his Amelia Pond, smiling at him from the window.   
“Ha ha!” The Doctor called, running over to the window. “Amelia Pond! It’s been ages!”  
“It’s so good to see you!” Amy replied, hugging him from through the window.  
“Crikey, affection? Who are you and what have you done with Amy Pond?” The Doctor jested, earning himself a slap on the shoulder. “Did you really miss me that much?”  
“Of course I have!” Amy exclaimed. “What have you been up to for so long?”  
The Doctor, deliberately trying to avoid telling her what he was actually worried about, told her an old story about him being stuck on a bus on a planet with massive alien stingrays. It wasn’t true but it did the job.  
“How’s the Roman?” The Doctor asked inquisitively, instantly disliking the fact that the smile on Amy’s face vanished.   
“Umm… he’s fine. We’re fine.” Amy answered, unconvincingly. The Doctor could tell something was wrong. And when things were wrong, he wanted to put them right.   
‘Couples fight all the time,’ he thought to himself. ‘It’s Amy and Rory. They’ll be fine.’  
“Well, can I come in then? Christmas Dinner for three?”   
A smile re-emerged on Amy’s face. “Of course! I’ll open the door!”  
Amy made her way out of the kitchen and towards the front door. Rory walked out of the living room and gave her an odd look.  
“Is he here?” Rory asked, a definite lack of passion in his voice.  
“Yeah,” Amy replied jovially, in hopes to lighten up her husband’s mood. “He’s just outside if you wanna come and say hi.”   
“Sure.” Rory said, plainly, walking slowly towards the door. Amy eyed him curiously. She just had no idea what had gotten into him. Was he ill? Did he love someone else? She didn’t want to cry on Christmas Day, so she supressed her feelings and opened the door for the Doctor.  
“Hello!” The Doctor shouted merrily, fishing a Santa hat out of his pocket and placing it on his head. “Merry Christmas one and all! Rory the Roman, how are you?”   
The Doctor opened his arms for a hug, and was surprised that Rory didn’t come in for one like he usually does, but instead took the Doctor’s hand and shook it.  
“Good to see you Doctor. How have you been?” Rory asked dryly, causing the mood to drop significantly. The Doctor’s cheery entrance had now come to a stop, and he was left perplexed.  
“Umm… I’ve been fine.” The Doctor answered, suddenly aware of how awkward the situation was, and tried to reignite some Christmas merriment. “How have you both been? The lovebirds? First married Christmas! Exciting right!”   
The Doctor’s efforts were in vain. The mood had plummeted, and the Ponds were both looking away from each other. The Doctor eyed them both suspiciously, especially Rory. Something seemed wrong. Very wrong. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it, but if he did, he felt like he would’ve had to wash his hands. The air was strange, and the Doctor momentarily stuck his tongue out to taste it. It was odd in taste, and texture. Almost artificial… but he couldn’t be sure.   
“Very.” Rory replied, snapping the Doctor out of his thoughts. “I’ve got to check on the brandy sauce.” He continued, walking directly into the kitchen.   
“Well…” the Doctor said, trying to break the ice a little. “Very festive in here isn’t it?” pointing at all the decorations. “Oooo, a mini Christmas tree! I once helped Saint Nicholas shift four million of these using the TARDIS. Didn’t half leave her in a state though, all the little pines stuck in the console caused me to get stuck in Ancient China for two weeks. Emperor Qin Shi Huang wasn’t very happy that I crashed the TARDIS through the gates of his palace.”  
Amy smiled at him, her eyes welling up. She loved it went he went on a rant like that. She had missed him so much, and needed him now more than ever. Tears began to trickle down her cheeks.  
After the Doctor finished examining the tree, he turned to see Amy crying. Instantly startled, he walked towards her and pulled her into a hug.  
“What’s wrong Pond?” He asked gently, lifting her head up from her chin. Offering him no immediate response, she dragged him into the bathroom, and locked the door. When she was certain that they were out of earshot from Rory, she started to bawl. She cried on the Doctor’s shoulder for ten or so minutes. The Doctor was perplexed. They were fine when he last saw them! Now, all of a sudden, he’s getting cold shouldered by Rory and consoling a weeping Amelia.   
“Amy? Amy what’s wrong?” The Doctor finally asked, positioning himself to face her.   
After a few deep breaths and some sniffles, Amy answered. “It’s Rory… something’s wrong…”  
She went on to explain everything that was going on. The coldness, the disappearing and the ego. The Doctor listened intently, occasionally pulling Amy into another hug when the tears resurfaced. He knew something was wrong as soon as he stepped through that door. He was good at spotting a problem, he’d had 900 years practice. When Amy got done explaining everything, the Doctor looked at himself in the mirror and adjusted his bow tie. This made Amy smile. That was what he did when he was going to spring into action, and she knew this was a mystery that would pique his interest.  
“So you think he’s having an affair?” The Doctor asked.  
“Yes. I can’t think of another explanation.” Amy replied.  
“Hmmm… could be. Not the type though is he?” The Doctor responded, still looking into the mirror.  
“How so?”  
“Well he waited 2000 years to protect you, I doubt that only six months later he would look for anyone else.”  
That thought hadn’t occurred to Amy. Rory had been exceptionally faithful to her, far more than any other woman on Earth could claim.   
“What’s happening then?” Amy asked, as if she could crumble at any moment. “He’s breaking my heart…”   
“Oh, Amy.” The Doctor pulled her into yet another hug. “I’m sure we’ll get to the bottom of this. Me and you together. Just like old times?”   
“Just like old times.” Amy smiled at the Doctor, who ran his finger across the air, and then put it in his mouth. “What are you doing?”  
“Nothing.” The Doctor responded, his finger still in his mouth. He wasn’t doing nothing. The air officially tasted funny. And not good funny, almost like an artificial chemical which was polluting the immediate atmosphere. Countless possibilities were running through the Doctor’s head. Was it a gas specialised to make people fall out of love? It was a good thought, but if it was why wasn’t it affecting Amy? She clearly still loved Rory. Also love is an extremely difficult emotion to reverse, so he discarded that thought. Could it be a gaseous alien lifeform living in the house, perhaps sent to spy on associates of the Doctor’s? More likely, but if they knew the Doctor, they knew that he could sense something like that if he decided to turn up. Or was it remnant particles of something that has already come and gone? Another good theory. But he couldn’t be sure, as there was no way of knowing why is was here, if he even was correct.  
“Doctor?” Amy snapped fingers in front of his face, removing him from his trance.   
“Sorry!” The Doctor said. “Got stuck in deep thought there.” He unlocked the door and walked back outside the house, and did the same thing. He could still taste whatever it was, but it was considerably weaker, proving to him that whatever the chemical was had been concentrated inside Amy and Rory’s house. The Doctor frowned. This was beyond current Earth technology, meaning there could be a clear and immediate threat. He still wasn’t sure.  
“Doctor?” Amy called from the doorway. “We’re about to eat now, what are you doing?”   
“Like I said, nothing.” The Doctor replied, trying to change the energy. He didn’t want to add to the pile of Amy’s worries at that moment. “I’m hungry, and I’ve got the best chef of her time cooking me Christmas Dinner!” The Doctor ruffled her hair, which made her giggle. He then skipped into the kitchen and sat down at the table, rubbing his hands, a childlike grin appearing on his face.  
While Amy and the Doctor shared jokes and lightly flirted, Rory opened a blue bottle from the cupboard, and poured a clear, blue-ish liquid into the brandy sauce, and smiled to himself.   
The Doctor usually kept an eye on Rory, and this was especially true today. Whenever Amy tried flirting on coming onto the Doctor, Rory would always kick up a fuss. But today, he seemed unmoved and uncaring about the fact that Amy was practically sat on his lap. The Doctor was becoming concerned that she was going to kiss him again.   
“Let’s do a cracker!” The Doctor exclaimed suddenly, hoping to avert the inevitable incoming tongue tennis. Amy smiled at the Doctor’s awkwardness, and grabbed a cracker from the table. It was then that the Doctor noticed there was only one cracker on the table to start with.  
“Where are the rest of the crackers?” The Doctor asked.  
Amy leaned in and whispered in his ear, “Mr Grumpy over there said they were stupid and he didn’t want one.”   
“Stupid?” The Doctor all but yelled. “I invented the Christmas cracker, and he said they’re stupid?”   
Amy giggled at the Doctor, not even questioning the fact that he claimed he invented Christmas crackers. She could believe it.  
They pulled the cracker, which the Doctor let Amy win, hoping it would make her day just a little better. They both had a good laugh at the reliably terrible joke and the flimsy plastic gift, which in this case was a moustache. For some reason the Doctor thought it looked better on Amy than on him, which earnt him another slap on the shoulder.  
Eventually, Christmas Dinner was served. The Doctor looked in awe of the mountain of food in front of him. He had been to many a Christmas Dinner, but this one looked delicious beyond belief.  
“Good lord, Amy!” The Doctor beamed at his companion. “This looks incredible!”   
“Aww, thanks Doctor!” Amy replied, blushing a little.  
Both pairs of eyes fell on Rory, who was already eating his, not looking at either of them. Amy and the Doctor exchanged another glance, then looked back at Rory.   
“Well Merry Christmas everyone!” The Doctor said, raising his glass, and clinking it with Amy and Rory’s. He took a sip of the wine, then spat it back into the glass. “I think I’ll stick with water.” Amy rolled her eyes, but still smiled at him.  
Some time later, after a Christmas Dinner that mainly involved conversation between Amy and the Doctor, whereas Rory barely ate anything and muttered any responses in the least passionate way possible, it was time for pudding, which Rory was preparing.   
“Have you made many Christmas puds before, Rory?” The Doctor asked, hoping for some form of an answer.   
“Yes.” Was his only response. The Doctor frowned again, before he looked back over at Amelia, who shook her head.  
“You’ve never made a Christmas Pudding in your life, what are you on about?” She stated.  
“Stop saying things you don’t know Amy.” Rory replied, coldly. “Just sit there and shut up.”   
Amy felt like she could cry again, but felt the reassuring hand of the Doctor slip into hers. She gave a weak smile and put her head on his shoulder, while he caressed the back of her hand.   
As Christmas Pudding was plated up, the Doctor could now tell something was really wrong. Rory poured brandy sauce all over the Doctor’s portion without him even asking for it. The Doctor liked brandy sauce, but usually you ask for those sorts of things. He eyed his dessert intensely, not sure what to make of it. He could smell something unusual as well, and it smelt like the taste in the air. The Doctor looked up from his bowl, only to see Rory staring at him from across the table, the expression on his face unmoving. The Doctor, not wanting to insult Rory, took a bite. The second he swallowed, he regretted that decision.  
The Doctor felt his entire body seize up, and his hearts jolted. He collapsed onto the floor and starting writhing in pain.  
“DOCTOR!” Amy screamed, rushing to his side, only to be forcefully shoved away from him by Rory.  
“Ow ow ow ow ow!” The Doctor screamed. “One heart! Only one heart is working!”   
“Look at you. Pathetic.” Rory said, as coldly as before, standing over the Doctor’s body.   
“Rory what are you doing?” The Doctor asked, still wriggling in pain, punching his chest, trying to restart his second heart.  
“Paredonhilicin. The poison of the Time Lords.” Rory replied.  
Now it made sense, the Doctor had been poisoned. He knew the taste was familiar, the way it electrified his tongue. Paredonhilicin was a fatal substance that the Daleks had developed as a chemical weapon in the early years of the Time War. It made one of the Time Lord’s hearts stop, and froze their ability to regenerate. Needless to say, it lead to a slow and painful death.  
“Are you…” the Doctor began, but started to choke halfway through. “Are you working for the Daleks?”  
“No. This is a gift from my master, to finally get rid of you.” Rory replied.  
“Who are you working for? Rory tell me, who is it?”   
“Shut it.” Rory said, kicking the Doctor in the stomach.  
“Rory Williams, stop it now!” Amy screamed, running back over to the Doctor, only to be grabbed by the neck by Rory, who started to choke her.  
“You don’t know me, or who I work for, Amelia Pond.” Rory shouted in her face, which had tears streaming down it. “You’re nothing in this world, nothing! Now I’ve killed the Doctor, and you can die with your imaginary friend!”   
While Rory was giving his brutal monologue, the Doctor had whipped out his sonic screwdriver, and pointed it at Rory. For a split second, Rory screamed, before he melted into a pile of liquid flesh.  
“Knew it.” The Doctor squeaked, not having enough energy to speak right now.  
Amy felt the fleshy liquid on her, and screamed. “RORY!” Before she knew it, she was screaming for the Doctor as well, who she rushed over to.  
“Doctor! Tell me what to do! I can’t lose you!” It was no use, the Doctor was fading, her cries becoming distant as he drifted into the darkness.  
“Stay with me raggedy man, please! Doctor? Doctor! DOCTOR!”   
TO BE CONTINUED


	3. Episode 0 Chapter 2

Hi everyone! Hope you’re enjoying the story so far. Please read and review so I can respond to feedback!  
Enjoy!

Episode 0 – It’s a Wonderful Life  
Chapter 2  
“Doctor, please wake up… please, please, please…” Amy whispered, her throat exhausted from all the screaming. She wrapped her arms around his limp body and cried into his chest. He wasn’t breathing, and neither heart was beating anymore. He hadn’t regenerated.  
The Doctor was dead.  
Suddenly, a bright flash of blue light exploded in front of Amy, causing her to get flung backwards. In the epicentre of the blue light, there was a woman, who was smiling at Amy from within the light.  
“Hello Sweetie.” The voice said, in an almost seductive manner.   
River Song stepped out of the light, and dropped onto her knees to attend to the Doctor.  
“River, he’s dead…” Amy told her, tears still pouring down her cheeks.  
“Oh, Amy. Never trust the Doctor.” River replied, pulling out a vial from her cleavage.   
“What? You mean he’s alive?” Amy asked, hopefully.  
“Spoilers.”  
River poured the liquid from the vial into the Doctor’s mouth, looked at her watch and counted to six, when the Doctor began coughing and spluttering.   
“There we go.” River stated, as if the whole situation had never happened. Amy was bewildered, but nevertheless rushed to the Doctor’s side.  
“Doctor? Are you okay?” She asked, her tears dropping onto his face.  
“Amelia Pond… the girl who waited… why are you always at the centre of some kind of mystery?” The Doctor asked distantly.   
“He’ll come to properly in a few minutes.” River said, using the vial to collect a sample of the brandy sauce that was still on the table.  
“What happened? How did you know to come here?” Amy asked River, standing up and walking over to her.  
“Time travel can be ever so confusing, can’t it?” River replied, grinning at Amy. “I got a very efficient warning that the Doctor was in danger, so here I am.”   
Amy stared at River. Always so mysterious, and she had no idea what she was to the Doctor, or whether he even knew that himself. Was she trustworthy? Was she reliable? No clue. But she was here now, when they needed help. That had to mean something.  
River strode over to the Doctor, who was trying to hoist himself of the floor, talking to himself about gas mask zombies from World War Two. River extended her hand to help the Doctor up, and was able to get him on his feet.  
“Thank you.” The Doctor slurred, finding it difficult to keep his balance.  
“So you’re alright then?” River asked.  
“Yeah… better than I was two minutes ago.”  
“Well then.” River slapped the Doctor across the face, and the Doctor dropped to his knees, holding his cheek. Amy, despite everything that happened that day, let out a snort.   
“What was that for?” The Doctor groaned, evidently in pain.  
“In a few very short hours, you are going to make a very big mistake that goes against your personal code, so that is your punishment.” River replied, bluntly.  
“I see, looking forward to it.” The Doctor said, looking over at the flesh puddle on the floor. Amy also walked back over to it, and started to rub it with her hands.  
“Rory… what have you done Doctor?” Amy asked.  
“That wasn’t Rory. For as long as he’s been different it never was. For the better part of two months you’ve been living with a flesh avatar of Rory, who’s sole mission was to poison me as soon as I popped round. Issue is he wasn’t conditioned to experience emotions like the real Rory, hence his attitude.” The Doctor explained, scanning the puddle with his sonic screwdriver, trying to ascertain any answers to the ongoing crisis.  
“So… is he dead?”   
The Doctor stopped in his tracks when he heard those words. They echoed in his head. He couldn’t let any harm come to the Ponds. But he had already failed in that mission. Now, he had to rectify that mistake.  
“Doctor? Please don’t tell me he’s dead! Doctor please tell me he’s alive!” Amy pleaded, on her knees, her hands clasped together as if she was praying. The Doctor turned around, and looked at her, squatting down to her level.   
“I don’t think he’s dead.” He responded, looking back over at the flesh.  
“Can you be sure of that?” River asked from behind him.  
“It’s a flesh avatar.” The Doctor responded, walking back over to the puddle. “I’m sure they’d have to keep a copy of the real specimen alive in order to maintain the duplicate. Otherwise, there would be no master copy, and the flesh would dissolve.”  
Amy breathed a huge sigh of relief. River also nodded in affirmation. It made sense, but now there was a bigger question.  
“So, where is he?” River asked.  
“I don’t know.” The Doctor replied, pacing around the kitchen. “He could literally be anywhere, and the working hypothesis is that he’s being kept in a chamber somewhere a long way from here, surrounded by people who want me dead and would go to extreme lengths to get the job done.”   
“We have to find him.” River stated.  
“I know we do, that’s number one on the priority list, but we have no leads. We need some kind of intense psychic link, or evidence of where he was taken, or someone who really –“ The Doctor stopped midsentence, his gaze fixed on Amy. “Actually, I think I’ve got an idea.” He said, looking over at River, then back at Amy.  
“Oh that is genius.” River said in awe, and began to collect a sample of the flesh.  
“What? What is?” Amy asked.  
“Come along, Pond.” The Doctor grabbed Amy by the arm, and dragged her out of the house, River following close behind.  
“Doctor, where are we going?”  
“I don’t know!” The Doctor was back in the zone. His voice stated that he had a particularly brilliant plan, so Amy was grateful for that.  
The trio rushed into the TARDIS, and the Doctor took off, River helping him.  
“Would someone like to tell me what’s happening?” Amy demanded, crossing her arms.  
“Amy, this is going to be difficult, but you can do it, I know you can.” The Doctor said, walking over to her, and holding her hand.  
“Doctor you’re scaring me.” Amy saw it in his eyes. It was a look she didn’t see very often, but it was enough to terrify her. The Doctor walked her over to the TARDIS console, showing her a handprint device.  
“The TARDIS is telepathic. It can literally understand you better than you understand yourself. And with a little help, it can take you where you need to go.” The Doctor paused, making sure Amy could keep up. “Amy, I need you to put your hand on that device.”  
“What does it do?”  
“Links your mind to the TARDIS. When you put your hand on there, I need you to think about Rory, and ask yourself where he is now. You and Rory have the strongest bond of all, you’re married, and you love each other. The TARDIS will register your need to be with him, and will, in theory, guide us to him.”  
“Will it work?” Amy asked, intensely, looking deep into the Doctor’s eyes. “Don’t lie to me because I’ll know. If this is the best chance of me finding my husband, I need to know.”  
The Doctor stared back, and sighed. “I don’t know for sure if it will work. But it’s the best we’ve got, and if he is being held captive by dangerous forces, then we don’t have much time.”  
Without hesitation, Amy placed her hand onto the device, and the TARDIS began to whir.  
“Concentrate Amy.” The Doctor encouraged her, holding her other hand. “Think about Rory, where is he now?”  
Amy’s mind filled with thoughts of Rory, and all the time they’d spent together. She thought about them playing hide and seek as children, their first kiss, his proposal, their wedding. She wanted him so very badly. A tear rolled down her cheek and splashed onto the TARDIS console. As if on que, the groan of the TARDIS began, and let them know that they were going somewhere.   
“It’s working!” River cried out triumphantly.  
“That’s it Amy! Don’t lose focus now, keep thinking.” The Doctor smiled. He was right. He loved it when he was right.  
The TARDIS landed, and Amy removed her hand from the console.  
“Well, the TARDIS seems to think he’s somewhere.” The Doctor said, marching towards the door.  
“Hold on!” River called out. “Environment check.”  
“Oh for the love of- I do it the old-fashioned way, which is fun, where you stick your head out of the door and have a look for yourself.” The Doctor continued to stride towards the door.  
“I just want to slap him sometimes.” River said to Amy, who let out a reserved giggle.  
The Doctor stuck his head out of the TARDIS door, only to stick it right back in.   
“I think we may need some oxygen support.” The Doctor stated, leaving the door open slightly.   
“What?” River walked over to the TARDIS door, and also looked outside. “Okay… where are the spacesuits?”   
“Right corridor, ninth left then fourth right, second left again and it’s the door straight in front of you, just past the Olympic Stadium and kangaroo exhibit.” The Doctor replied, and River ran towards the TARDIS corridor and disappeared out of sight.  
“Where are we? Why do we need spacesuits?” Amy asked, instinctively walking over to the door.  
“Take a look.” The Doctor said, opening the door a little wider so Amy could see.  
“Wow…” Amy was in shock at what she was seeing. It was beautiful and worrying at the same time.   
They were on the moon, and there was a massive spaceship parked right in front of them. Amy looked around, not being able to see much.  
“Where’s the Earth? Usually when there are pictures on the moon you can see the Earth…” Amy asked, still looking around the immediate vicinity.  
“Because we’re on the dark side of the moon, the Earth is facing the opposite side. The only thing keeping us bright is a slither of sunshine and the lights from that ship.” The Doctor paused again, a million things running through his head. “That could mean…”  
“Mean what?”  
“Whoever’s here is hiding, parking their ship on the dark side of the moon and using low levels of power to remain undetected.”  
“Is that bad?”  
“If it was good, would they need to hide?”   
Amy looked back at the ship and gulped. Clearly they were not in friendly territory, and neither was Rory.  
“So is he in there then?” Amy asked in anticipation.  
“Apparently.” The Doctor replied, still lost in his thoughts. This was bad, and a lot of people were in danger. This was a very large ship, potentially warrior class or something of that status, meaning it had enough fire power to blast the Earth out of orbit.   
River re-emerged carrying three spacesuits, each TARDIS blue. It took some time, but the trio were able to get their spacesuits on.  
“Now, everyone,” the Doctor began. “We have no idea what’s out there, or who occupies that ship. We are entering potentially hostile territory, so we all need to keep an eye out, and keep our wits about us.”  
Nods were exchanged, and the Doctor knew his message had been understood.  
Letting out a childish grin, the Doctor simply said; “Geronimo.”, before stepping out of the TARDIS, Amy and River close behind him.  
Meanwhile, on board the ship, a man in 51st century army uniform was speaking to a cloaked hologram.  
“Our sensors detected it sir. He’s here, like you said he’d be. The Doctor’s here.” The army man told the hologram.  
“Well,” the hologram replied, in a sinister tone. “You know what to do. Capture him and all of his friends, then bring them to me. Is the male still alive?”  
The army man looked over, to see Rory slumped in a pile on the floor. He nodded at another person in uniform, who poked Rory with a stun stick. Rory winced in pain and yet out a yelp.  
“He’s alive. We can use him as bait for the girl.”  
“Perfect.” The hologram replied, pausing for a moment. “I’ve waited so long, now he’s here.”  
“Why do you need the Doctor?”   
The hologram walked closer to the army man, and smiled.  
“I’m dying. And the Doctor has what I need. If you don’t bring him to me, it doesn’t matter how far you run, what dark corner of the universe you hide in, I will find you, and I’ll kill every last one of you as slowly and painfully as possible.”  
With that, the hologram let out a terrifying laugh, before fading away.  
The army man turned to a group of soldiers, and gave his orders.  
“Catch the Doctor and his friends, and bring them to me. I want them alive. Deploy the Autons, and only use your stun weapons. Is that understood?”  
“Yes sir!” echoed around the room, and the soldiers rushed to their positions.  
The man walked over to the barely conscious Rory, grabbed him by the neck and whispered to him.  
“Enjoy the last few moments of you, your wife’s and your friend’s lives. Because it’s all about to end, and it’ll be all your fault.” He dropped Rory onto the floor, and walked back over to his podium.  
“Is everybody ready?” The man shouted.  
“Yes sir!”  
“This is Colonel Parch, begin the assault.”  
TO BE CONTINUED


	4. Episode 0 Chapter 3

Hi everyone! Hope you’re enjoying the story so far. Please read and review so I can respond to feedback!  
Enjoy!

Episode 0 – It’s a Wonderful Life  
Chapter 3

The Doctor, Amy and River cautiously approached the parked spaceship. Amy was nervous beyond belief. Her husband was somewhere on this ship, if the TARDIS was correct, and this ship was parked on the dark side of the moon to avoid being detected. God knows what was waiting for them in there.  
River was using her device to scan for local life signs, as that would be an indicator to whether Rory might be in the surrounding area. She too was nervous, but she also knew what was coming.  
The Doctor simply marched on towards the spaceship, sonic in hand, with only his brains and a torch to get the better of this scenario. He was also eyeing up the spaceship. It was confusing to him – it was Earth technology, but not for thousands of years. Could be a 65th century battle carrier, but he wasn’t sure. If it was the case – what was it carrying?  
“Doctor,” River was able to bring him out of his thoughts. “I’m detecting 511 life signs on board. All human.”  
“That doesn’t make sense.” The Doctor turned around and snatched the device out of River’s hands. River and Amy exchanged a glance, while River shook her head.  
“Why doesn’t it make sense?” Amy asked.  
“Number one, look at it! It’s massive! And only 511 people onboard? It’s a battle carrier not a submarine. Number two, they’re human. It’s 2010, human technology is thousands of years away from this.”  
“Time travel?” Amy suggested.  
“No. Can’t be. It may be from the future but it’s pre-human time travel.”  
“So how did they get here?” River asked, walking closer to the Doctor.  
“They’ve had help. Dangerous help. If they’re somehow here from the 65th century then someone’s been majorly messing with the course of human technology.”  
“We need to get in there and neutralise that technology.” River said confidently, marching on.  
“Never mind that, what about my husband?” Amy started to stride forward as well.  
The Doctor hesitated, looking at the ship intensely.   
‘It’s just… wrong.’ He thought to himself, before running to catch up with the girls, who were almost at the ship.  
Meanwhile, Colonel Parch stood at one of the observation decks of the ship, watching the Doctor and his friends walk slowly into a carefully laid trap.  
“Sir, they’ll be in range in no more than three minutes.” A soldier told him. Parch smiled, and told the soldier to get ready for battle. He’d grown up on the stories. The Doctor was no pushover. But he was compassionate, and that would always be his weakness. He thought back to the legends he was told about the Doctor as a child. The man who walks in blood, always interfering, flouting the rules of his own species, the Time War, and so much more. He swore to end the Doctor, and when his client came along, it was perfect.   
Parch looked over at Rory, slumped against the wall, half-conscious. He strode over to him, yanked him up, and brought him to the window.  
“Look who’s here!” He said, mockingly. “Your beloved wife, River Song, and the Doctor. All here to save you. Isn’t that sweet?” He then pushed Rory onto the floor. “Just a shame that it won’t work. They’ll be captured in the next two minutes, and the lot of you will be dead before Boxing Day. Oh… finally, what a Christmas present!”  
Rory looked up in horror at the man in front of him, obviously delusional. He was hopeful that the Doctor would keep everyone safe and be able to rescue him, then get him home in time for tea and turkey sandwiches. But he had a terrible sense of foreboding that he couldn’t shake off. He just wanted to be left alone, and be with his wife. He was right, being with the Doctor was dangerous.   
“You won’t stop him.” Rory was able to say, despite choking on his own blood a few times.  
“Won’t I?” Parch bent down, and punched Rory on the nose, which produced an audible crack. “We’ll see about that.”  
“Sir, we’re ready.”  
Parch smiled again, cleared his throat and gave the order.  
“Deploy the Autons.”  
“It’s supposed to be Christmas Day!” Amy whined as she trudged closer and closer to the spaceship.  
“Well, if we all survive, we could all have turkey sandwiches and blackcurrant squash!” The Doctor said enthusiastically, as if he could picture them in front of him.   
“Blackcurrant squash?” Amy questioned. “Are you five?”  
“What’s the point of being a grown up if you can’t be childish sometimes?”  
“He lives by that.” River said.  
Out of nowhere, humanoid figures appeared right in front of the trio, hands raised. Then, their hands opened, revealing their weaponry.  
“RUN!” The Doctor shouted, as the trio split up in different directions, just as the Autons began to fire.  
“It’s just basic stun weaponry, it won’t kill you but don’t let them get you either!” River shouted, mainly for Amy’s benefit. “Doctor, plan?”  
“Thinking of one, might take a minute.”  
“We don’t have a minute!” Amy screamed, dodging stun shots left and right.  
“They’re Autons, I know that, they’re Autons.” The Doctor confirmed to himself.  
“Fantastic, we can contact their leaders later and file a complaint!” Amy jested.  
“65th century human powered Autons, remote controlled via computer automated instructions…” the Doctor continued to gabble to himself, trying to formulate a cohesive plan before it was too late.  
“Could you hack it?” River asked, running for her life as four Autons were pursuing her.  
“No it would take too long… but I could do this!” The Doctor raised his sonic screwdriver and pointed it at the Autons, who froze and began to twitch in place. “This could hold them off for as long as the sonic is on them.”  
“What are you doing?” Amy asked, ducking behind a large piece of moon rock.  
“Scrambling the signal!” The Doctor replied, still thinking of a stage two to the plan. “River! Amy! Try and find any off-switch or something!”   
River and Amy began checking the Autons all over. The Doctor wasn’t sure how long he could hold them in place for.   
“I found a red button!” Amy called to the Doctor. The red button was on the back of the Auton’s left heel.  
“Okay Amy don’t press it until I say so!”  
“What if I already pressed it?”   
“Then- wait you what?” The Doctor lowered the sonic screwdriver, and the Autons began moving again. He was just about to give the signal to run before he heard something truly terrifying.  
AUTON NUCLEAR SELF-DESTRUCT PROTOCOLS INITIATED  
“RUN! GET TO THE SHIP!” The Doctor shouted at the top of his lungs, and the trio sprinted towards the ship as fast as they could, hearing a bone chilling countdown behind them.  
“Why would they need a nuclear explosion?” Amy shouted, still making a break for the ship.  
“Warfare purposes, terrorist organisations, I don’t know, just RUN!”   
The group made it to the ship. The Doctor began immediately sonicing the perimeter of the ship, trying to find a suitable entrance. Getting desperate, the Doctor was sprinting around the ship, punching every part of it that looked like a potential entranceway.  
3, 2, 1  
The trio froze in place.  
“DON’T LOOK AT THE EXPLOSION, AND GET DOWN!” The Doctor was able to shout before the sound of a colossal explosion was heard from behind them, and a blazing white light engulfed their surroundings.  
Onboard the ship, the crew looked on in horror, and none more so than Colonel Parch.   
“WHAT JUST HAPPENED?” He screamed at his crew. “WELL? Has anyone got anything to say?”  
“Sir…” A soldier slowly approached him. “We have reason to believe that they found the nuclear detonation button.”  
“Why… did we send… the nuclear Autons… IN A KIDNAPPING MISSION!” Colonel Parch screamed, as he took out his gun, and shot the soldier right between his eyes. “YOU’VE KILLED US ALL!”   
The shockwave shook the ship, but the force field would be able to hold back any major damage. Colonel Parch walked back over to the observation deck, and stared in disbelief at the mushroom cloud that was now forming.  
“Number one, you’ve just revealed our location to Earth, do you think they won’t notice that? Number two, you’ve killed the Doctor, who we were supposed to be delivering to the client… and number three… he’ll now come after us. YOU’VE CONDEMED US!” He pointed his gun at other members of his crew and started to shoot. He killed a good four or five of them, as the others ran out of the room.  
All the commotion, as well as the jolting of the ship, caused Rory to become more aware, and he tried to pick himself up to see what everyone was looking at out of the window. Once he saw the mushroom cloud, his heart froze.   
“Take a good look.” Parch said to Rory. “Because that’s just killed your wife and your friends.” He punched Rory again, making him fall back onto the ground. Unlike last time, Rory didn’t want to get back up. If she was dead, then life was meaningless. But he didn’t know that. There was still hope.   
Colonel Parch slumped in his chair, head in hands. He was a dead man. But he would much rather die quickly than be tortured by a madman. Pressing a set of buttons, and twisting a key, the ship took off again, and started to gather speed.  
“Where are we going?” Rory asked, trying to sit up again.  
“Earth. At about 30,000 miles an hour. If we’re going to die, let there be chaos. I’ll crash this ship into the Earth, and it’ll wipe out the human race for good.”  
“But you’re human… that’s a paradox surely?”   
“Our client has something for that. Speaking of…” Parch pressed a few more buttons, and the hooded man appeared again.  
“Ahh… General Parch. How goes the masterpiece?” The man said.  
Parch hesitated, and gulped before he answered.  
“I regret to inform you sir, that the Doctor is dead, along with his friends.”  
The hooded figure gritted his teeth, and was audibly muttering to himself about something.  
“There may be other ways to cure you sir, if you just-“  
“I NEEDED THE DOCTOR!” The hooded figure bellowed. “You realise what you’ve done, don’t you?”  
“Yes sir.” Parch responded, his authoritative tone drained.  
“You know who I am, and believe me, whatever you’ve heard… I’m a thousand times worse.”  
“Sir, I- “  
“YOU WILL CALL ME BY NAME!”  
Suddenly, Colonel Parch regained some testosterone and tried to defend himself.  
“I will not use your chosen title, as that is not a position you have over me.”  
“Oh, don’t I. Let’s see about that, when I’m standing over your half-dismembered body. I’m coming… and I won’t ever stop.”   
With that, the figure faded. Colonel Parch looked terrified.  
“Sir,” a soldier walked into the room, her hands shaking.   
“What?” Colonel Parch looked exhausted, and he slumped back into his chair.  
“We’ve just got a report from the lower decks, someone’s boarded the carrier.”  
Colonel Parch stared at her, wide eyed.  
“God save us.”

TO BE CONTINUED


	5. Episode 0 Chapter 4

Hello Stonehenge! Just wanted to let you know that I am going to be updating daily if I can (which I will try to do as much as possible), there’s lots to get through, so let’s give it a go!  
Anyways, please follow and favourite, and leave some reviews (all of which I will respond to via PM) so I can get some insight on how the readers feel!  
Geronimo!

Episode 0 – It’s a Wonderful Life  
Chapter 4

The Doctor slowly raised his head and looked behind him. The mushroom cloud was slowly rising up into space. Then the thought hit him – why hadn’t they been evaporated? As the shockwave blasted the side of the ship, the Doctor realised they were just barely inside the ship’s force field zone, which was a remarkable stroke of luck.  
“Come along, you two!” The Doctor shouted, as the noise of radioactive rocks crashing all around them required him to do so. “We’re not dead yet!”  
The trio continued to run round the ship, desperately looking for an entranceway. Eventually, they found one. It was likely used as waste disposal, but didn’t have time to consider other options. The Doctor and River climbed in, and were able to establish a sitting position. Just as Amy was about to climb in, the ship began to rumble, and the Doctor instantly knew it was about to take off. He grabbed Amy by the arm, and tried to use his other arm to support her back, but the ship had already taken off and was gathering consistent speed. Amy looked down, the moon surface now a long way below her legs, which were dangling out of the bottom of the ship, only being supported by the Doctor and River, who were desperately trying to pull her into the ship’s bowel.  
“Doctor…” Amy looked terrified, and felt a tear run down her cheek. “Please…”  
“River! Help me!” The Doctor shouted at her, trying his best to pull Amy’s torso into the ship. River used her other arm to grab Amy by the knee and assisted in hoisting her into the ship. After a very long thirty seconds of uncertainty, Amy finally felt secure.   
“Well, we’ve boarded.” River stated, producing a torch and navigating their immediate surroundings, hoping to find somewhere that smelt a little less like rotting food and human waste. They found a ventilation shaft, which they crawled into, and eventually made their way into a long corridor.  
“Sir,” a soldier walked into the room, her hands shaking.   
“What?” Colonel Parch looked exhausted, and he slumped back into his chair.  
“We’ve just got a report from the lower decks, someone’s boarded the carrier.”  
Colonel Parch stared at her, wide eyed.  
“God save us.”  
Colonel Parch turned back to the window, looking at the Earth as they approached it with rapid speed.  
“How long until impact?” he asked, his heart beating out of his chest.  
“22 minutes and 49 seconds, sir.” The soldier replied. “We have an escape pod ready for you if you could come this way and – “  
“I have no intention to survive this.” Colonel Parch cut her off, his voice devoid of feeling. All he could do is stare at the Earth as it slowly grew closer and closer.  
Rory also watched as the ship hurtled towards the planet, and he thought of everything he was going to lose. But he still had hope. The Doctor and Amy were good at getting out of crazy situations like this. He just had to hold out hope that they would rescue him.  
Parch regained his ability to speak and turned around to face the soldier.  
“This is no longer a kidnapping mission. We have one or potentially more hostiles on board this ship. Anyone who is not personnel must be shot the moment you see them. Don’t take prisoners or hostages. Don’t shoot to injure or warn. Kill anyone acting suspicious. Is that understood?”   
“Yes sir.” The soldier turned and left the room, leaving Rory and Parch on their own. Parch simply just swivelled his chair back around to gaze at the Earth. Rory, on the hand, wasn’t going to be lazy and just wait. He’d waited for 2000 years, and he was done with waiting as a concept. He needed to act. If he could get to the computer, he could try and contact Earth and let them know what’s coming, or maybe even find the Doctor, Amy and River, if they were still alive.  
Rory’s eyes scanned the room for possibilities. He just needed Parch out of the way, and he could try and stop this from happening. Rory’s eyes eventually fell on one of the dead soldiers, who still had their stun weapons at hand. Problem was, they were on the other side of the room, and Rory was almost incapable of walking at this stage. He was fairly sure he had a broken leg, as well as some broken ribs. He would have to crawl along the floor as quickly and quietly as possible, so as not to attract the attention of Parch, then retrieve a weapon from a dead man’s hand, and, assuming he didn’t stun himself in the process, make his way up to Parch as silently as physically possible and stun him for long enough to try and figure out how to contact Earth and the Doctor, with the presumption that he even knew how to work the computer. The odds weren’t massively in his favour, but it was well worth a go. Rory braced himself for what could be the last moments of his life, and began to scoot over to the dead bodies.  
“Doctor, where exactly are we?” River asked, as the Doctor waved his sonic screwdriver in the air, hoping it would show them where they needed to go.  
“Somewhere at the bottom of the ship, probably nearby staff quarters if I know my battle carriers.” The Doctor replied, clearly absorbed by the readings of his screwdriver. “Which means we need to make our way up and to the front of the ship, where we will find the central command point and hopefully from there be able to locate Rory. In the meantime – “  
The Doctor stopped midsentence and froze.   
“Doctor? What is it?” Amy asked, walking closer to him.  
“The TARDIS…” he responded quietly. The TARDIS was still on the moon, not more than half a mile from a small nuclear explosion.   
“Oh my God…” Amy was in shock. How would they get home? She started to choke up. This was officially the worst Christmas ever. That was the Doctor’s only place of refuge. His home now lost to him.  
“The TARDIS would’ve survived the impact, but it’s now been hurtled off out into space. It’s probably a thousand miles away already.” The Doctor stated, his face unmoving. Amy slipped her hand into his, and pulled him into a hug.  
“Me and Rory have a spare room.” Amy joked, trying to lift the Doctor’s mood, which seemed to work. It was sort of a half joke, because if he never did find the TARDIS again he would have to stay somewhere, provided they survived today. But she knew he could never live like that. It would drive him insane. He needed to live on the edge, see the universe and it’s infinite potential. She smiled a sad smile, and pulled out of the hug.   
“I’ll worry about that later.” The Doctor adjusted himself, refocusing his attention back to the sonic screwdriver. “First things first, this is a ship carrying Autons of all different kinds, so be careful. Don’t press that red button again or else the ship will literally evaporate. Second, this ship is travelling incredibly quickly, and I want to know why. Let’s find a window.” The Doctor began to run in a random direction, and Amy and River just followed him. They were used to it by now. “Also!” The Doctor shouted, spinning round on the spot, causing River and Amy to stop too. “If you see any soldiers, hide. They’re definitely out to kill us or something along those lines.” The girls nodded, and the Doctor resumed his sprint into the unknown.   
Rory was now almost within reach of a stun device. He’d been subjected to it’s brutality enough to know that if he could hit Colonel Parch with it, he’d pass out for at least ten minutes. Hopefully that was all the time he would need. Rory shuffled a little closer, his clothes making an audible squeak against the floor, which caused him to freeze and lock his eyes on Parch. Thankfully, he didn’t seem to notice. Rory’s mind was jittery, and he started to wonder why everything seemed so much louder when he was trying to be quiet. He’d have to flag that one up with the Doctor. Rory reached out and grabbed the stun device from the dead man’s hand. He felt guilty, but he had no other choice. Billions of people were going to die if he waited for people who may or may not be coming.   
Rory heard Parch stand up, and his heart froze again. As he slowly turned his head, he could see that he was staring directly into the Colonel’s eyes. He looked furious, and had his hand on his holster, ready to produce his gun at any second. There was a minor issue however, as Rory’s weapon would knock him out, whereas his weapon would kill Rory stone dead. They were locked in a standoff, not knowing what to do. Rory didn’t want to take any chances, and was prepared to shoot his weapon. However he knew he was injured, and moving his arms caused his chest to seize up, slowing him down significantly. But he knew it was better to try than do nothing. Rory, as quickly as he possibly could, raised his weapon, and the Colonel did the same. Only one shot was made.  
The Doctor eventually found a mini-observation deck of sorts. He could better assess the situation if he knew what his surroundings were. In this case, they weren’t as cheery as he had hoped.   
“If I’ve got my geography right,” the Doctor began, cautiously. “We are on course to impact with the Earth.”  
“How much damage would that do?” Amy asked apprehensively.  
“It would kill a billion people, at least… maybe even the whole of humanity with the after effects…” the Doctor trailed off, clearly trying to think of a plan. His mind was interrupted however, with the sound of rapid footsteps from the corridor behind them.   
Twelve soldiers rounded the corner, guns raised, causing the trio to back up against the glass of the observation deck.   
The soldiers all shouted different things, but the Doctor, Amy and River were all fairly sure what was coming next. Amy ran into the Doctor’s arms, and he whispered comforting words to her before his face lit up with a smile. River felt comforted by that smile, as it meant he had a plan.   
“You two,” he said, quietly, as to not divulge his lifesaving plan to the soldiers. “Remember the time we needed to get a grip?” The Doctor then shot a glance at the glass behind them.  
“You’re a genius.” River stated, finding something stable to hold onto.  
“OPEN FIRE!” One of the soldiers yelled, and a barrage of gunshots followed.

TO BE CONTINUED


End file.
